Caring for a child with a disability can get expensive. But having the right kind of health insurance can make a big difference. With so many plans out there, it’s hard to know which is the right plan, or if one plan is enough.The good news is that you have options. You may think that including your exceptional family member on your family’s private health insurance plan (like the one you get through your job) is your only choice.
But that’s not true. In Massachusetts, your child with a disability can also get a MassHealth plan as secondary coverage, regardless of your income level. Why should you get this secondary coverage? For one reason, having your child enrolled in MassHealth (usually MassHealth CommonHealth) will also let you apply for MassHealth’s Premium Assistance program, which could give you reimbursements for hundreds of dollars spent on your family’s monthly private health insurance fees.This program could keep your family from paying too much money on premiums. Don’t wait to apply – one parent told us that she found out about Premium Assistance “years after I could have used it,” and that she “could have saved thousands of dollars” if she had enrolled her family right away.The Premium Assistance program doesn’t apply to all private insurance plans, but it’s worth finding out if it applies to yours. The next step is to:
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Submit your MassHealth application online, over the phone by calling 1-800-841-2900, or in person by visiting your local MassHealth Enrollment Center, OR
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If you already have CommonHealth as secondary insurance, call 1-800-862-4840, ext. 7 to apply for the MassHealth Premium Assistance program.
Premium Assistance is just one of the benefits of having MassHealth coverage. To learn more about these benefits – and how to optimize your health insurance in general – check out our Exceptional Lives Health Insurance Guide.The Exceptional Lives team is available to answer any questions you may have along the way. Give us a call at 1-844-354-1212 or send us an email at info@exceptionallives.org.
